Nakba Day event commemorated 1948 displacement of more than 700,000 Palestinians
Gaza solidarity protesters gathered outside Moncton City Hall recently as part of Nakba Day, which commemorates the violent displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians during the Arab-Israeli War that accompanied the founding of Israel in 1948.
The United Nations recognizes approximately 6 million displaced people and their descendants as refugees following the historical event known as the Nakba, an Arabic word meaning catastrophe. In the Gaza Strip, those refugees represent most of the population.
At the protest in Moncton on Nakba Day, May 15, peace activists noted a grim continuity between the current military assault on Gaza and events that occurred more than 75 years ago.
Steve Berube of the grassroots group Citizens for Peace told the crowd that he knows people in the local community who have lost “close to 50 family members” in the Gaza Strip in recent months, and that he knows others in Canada who have lost upwards of 100 family members.
“This is not just something that affects people far away, it affects people living here,” he said.
Another speaker, reading from a speech by Annie Clair of Elsipogtog First Nation, noted parallels between the experiences of Palestinians and Mi’kmaq people under settler colonialism. “There was life on Mi’kmaq land that was taken by settlers,” Clair said.
Berube called for Canada to end its “unwavering support for Israel,” a reference to Canada’s track record as one of the country’s staunchest allies.
“Not only should we stop shipping arms to them, but we… should consider stopping all trade with Israel,” said the retired United Church minister. (more...)
Gaza solidarity activists tell feds to stop supporting Israel
No comments:
Post a Comment